Eight-year-old Zoya Kapadia was wheeled into a Brampton mosque Saturday morning on a stretcher, so that she could say goodbye to her parents and sister.
A house fire on Tuesday killed Amina Kapadia, 19, and her parents Iftekhar Niazi, 48 and Jyoti Kapadia, 45. Zoya survived the blaze but suffered third-degree burns and smoke inhalation. She was rushed to Sick Kids Hospital where she was in serious but stable condition, Zeeshan Niazi, a nephew of Iftekhar Niazi, previously told the Star.
After Zoya’s brief appearance at the mosque Saturday, she returned to the hospital, and friends and family began to arrive for the funeral.
Imam Omar Subedar said the community is still in a state of shock.
“This could happen to anyone if certain checks and balances are not put in place such as having active smoke alarms and things of that nature. So for something of this nature to happen, it definitely has come to the community as a shock,” Subedar said. “We just have to offer emotional support.”
The Brampton Makki Masjid, where Iftekhar Niazi regularly attended Friday prayers, had a filled parking lot for the funeral, with even the rows between spots being used. Attendees also took to parking their cars on the street or in parking lots down the road.
Those in attendance spoke highly of the family.
A high school friend of Amina, Trent Damon, 18, described her as “funny, intelligent, smart” and someone who was “on good terms with everyone.”
Damon said when he found out about her death the news “shook” him and that he “couldn’t believe it.”
“You hear about these things all the time but to know someone, who you saw and spoke to on a daily basis is different,” Damon said. “She’s just gone.”
Sunil Bechar, who knew Jyoti and her family as a child and reconnected with her last year, called the fire “senseless.”
“It’s unreal,” he said. “It’s a tragedy that could have been prevented.”
Bechar said he’s also concerned about what will happen to Zoya now, and emphasized Jyoti’s affection for her children.
“Her kids meant the world to her,” he said.
According to Subedar, “a lot of funds have been raised” to support Zoya in the future.
“It’s just a matter of co-ordination now,” he said. “But the community has just come full fledged forward to support the daughter in any way they can.”
Two GoFundMe pages were previously started for the family to cover funeral costs and Zoya’s medical and financial needs. One has raised approximately $7,000 of a $75,000 goal. The other has raised about $40,000 of a $50,000 goal. It said the funeral expenses had been covered by “anonymous donors” and all of the contributions will go toward Zoya’s future needs.
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